Book Reviews from a Book Lover

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Monthly Archives: May 2016

It has totally been a minute and a half since I have done a Top Ten Tuesday. The school year is winding down, which means, less planning, less grading, less stressing, and more time for reading. Yay! Here is what I hope to be the first of many more Top Ten Tuesdays, as hosted by The Broke and Bookish

1. The Sweet Series by Wendy Higgins

2. The Ravens Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater

3. Lailah by Nikki Kelly

4. The Lying Game by Sara Shepard

5. Trylle series by Amanda Hockings

6. These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

7. Everneath by Ashton Brodie

8. Wait for You by Jennifer L. Armentrout

9. The Collector’s Society by Heather Lyons

10. An Ember in the Ashes Sabaa Tahir

I could literally continue this list for eternity, because 95% of the books I pick up are on a whim, aka I like their cover.

For years, Gansey has been on a quest to find a lost king. One by one, he’s drawn others into this quest: Ronan, who steals from dreams; Adam, whose life is no longer his own; Noah, whose life is no longer a lie; and Blue, who loves Gansey…and is certain she is destined to kill him.

Now the endgame has begun. Dreams and nightmares are converging. Love and loss are inseparable. And the quest refuses to be pinned to a path.

Like most, I feel like I have been waiting for this one for years, and I guess in a way I was. “The Raven King,” is the conclusion to Stiefvater’s acclaimed Ravens Cycle. After having a sick weekend before standardized testing (i.e. the week of no lesson planning), I was finally able to sit down and read this one.

What I liked: Ahh Gansey. Marry me. Gansey continues to be my favorite character in the series, and I imagine that, that is his sole purpose. The writing continues to be centerstage here. Stiefvater’s whimsical words jump of the page, creating a magical and delightful world. The way she weaves words together is magic in and of itself. My absolute favorite part of this book was the introduction of new(ish) character Henry. He brings a weird, off-sense, old-timey humor to the otherwise serious group that I really enjoyed. He fits in because he doesn’t fit in anywhere else, which is really the theme of our little group. Kudos Stiefvater for introducing a character that I like almost as much as Gansey.

What I didn’t like: While loose ends were tied up, I honestly didn’t feel like this was much of a series finale, as a stand alone adventure. Things didn’t really gel together in this last book and even though it was interesting in and of itself, I didn’t like it as a concluding novel.

Overall, I’m sad to see this series end. It was wonderfully original and super captivating. 4/4